With more drivers going electric, Worldline has debuted an electric vehicle payments tool.
The company’s Worldline EV Charging Payments Suite is designed to meet the needs of players in the electric vehicle (EV) charging ecosystem — infrastructure owners, charging station manufacturers, charge point operators and mobility service providers — as Europe enjoys a boom in EV use, according to a Wednesday (June 14) press release.
“Designed as a modular end-to-end solution specifically for the EVC (electric vehicle charging) market, the solution meets all international and local payment requirements of charging providers and retailers across the EU and can be deployed in every European country,” the company said in the release.
The payments suite is compatible with all of Europe’s commercially available charging stations, as well as with recent regulations, per the release.
“Additional features are specifically tailored to the charging process, such as pre-authorization, incremental authorization and online reversal,” the company said in the release. “The latter guarantees that funds never stay blocked for too long on the driver’s bank account.”
The launch of Worldline’s suite comes as several retailers are also embracing a rise in EV ownership. For example, Walmart announced in April that it plans to have a nationwide network of EV-fast charging stations at its stores. The company already has nearly 1,300 EV fast-charging stations at more than 280 stores in the United States.
Earlier this year, 7-Eleven debuted 7Charge, described as a “proprietary EV charging network and app” that is part of an effort to create “one of the largest and most compatible electric vehicle (EV) fast-charging networks of any retailer in North America.”
Subway, meanwhile, has teamed up with GenZ EV Solutions to build Subway Oasis charging parks, while Volvo and Starbucks last year teamed to bring electric vehicle chargers to the coffee giant’s locations.
As noted here in March, these partnerships help EV companies get more charging stations in the field while letting retailers supercharge customer traffic.
EVgo said last year in a survey that 80% of the users of its charging stations often patronize local retailers while their vehicle is charging.
“The customers’ average spend per shopping session equaled more than $1 per minute spent charging,” PYMNTS reported at the time. “The minutes add up, the vehicle gets its juice, the retailers see a boost in their own fortunes.”